Fix Bike Rear Derailleur That Won't Shift Into Highest Gear/Small Cog

I show the steps how to diagnose and repair a rear derailleur that wont shift to the high gears/small cogs.

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[Jouco]

Watching this on the couch with a cup of coffee.. now it's time to head on down to the garage and tackle the problem, Thanks a lot!

[OjStudios]

This was just the issue today with one MTB. Whole derailleur was bent so I just bent it straight. Worked like a charm after that. Thanks for informative and clear videos!

[davogladwin]

Legend, was stuck after putting in a new gear cable in a Trek Domane 5.9, and even the limit screws had all lined up. Even with no cable screwed in, the chain would not drop to the smallest cog. After just releasing the limit screws (even though they lined up ok) the spring in the derailleur allowed the chain to drop again, and, all 11 gears came back! Slight adjustment on the H/L screws and an index and shazaam. Thanks mate.

[Apexiar]

I never comment on videos, but oh my goodness was this video a lifesaver... a combination of tip 1 & 2 immediately fixed my issue. After reindexing my gears my bike has never shifted so smoothly and consistently. Thank you!!!

[NexaYa]

Thanks! I could shift to highest gear when bike is on bike stand but not when i cycle regularly outside. Fixed issue by unscrewing H limiting screw a little bit as you mentioned in the video. Great tips, keep up the good work!

[MrMorvar]

After 9 years this was still helpful :) Thank you!

[samson]

You fixed my issue! Thank you! HL screw was 2 full revolutions off, backed it out and good to go 😊

[RussellHonnor]

Fantastic video. Very clear and analytical. Just what I needed
Thanks RJ !!!

[ianmachin]

Thanks for the video, easy fix to a problem that has been bugging me for weeks, and as usual, not difficult to remedy. Gear change works perfectly now.

[fbombtehgrat]

Finally... My problem was fixed by the WD40 + wet lube. Thanks for the great video, The RJ Bike Guy!

[chilly]

thank you for the help, honestly the most helpful tutorial i’ve ever watched on youtube 👍

[MikeBear]

My bike fell over the other day, and messed up something in the derailleur. It was "hunting" between several higher gears. After watching this, I went out and checked it, and noticed that the single set screw that presses against the frame of the bike had jumped under the little stub somehow. I unscrewed the large hanger mounting screw almost all the way out. I then spun the internal part of the derailleur, to get the screw back on the frame stub. Then while holding that with one hand against the spring tension, I screwed the mounting screw back in all the way. Now it all looks ok, and properly shifts and indexes between the gears up and down! Thanks!

[rojoreno]

excellent video, especially good that you addressed multiple issues why the derailleur may not be functioning correctly.

[petermilenkovic]

Legend mate, twice you have been spot on with my shifting problems thanks heaps!

[lekobiashvili]

Here are two more hints from my experience:

1. Once a customer came to me with the washer on the cable clamping bolt turned 180-degree. The anti-rotation protrusion of the washer was touching the derailleur body on the next to the last gear, and so the derailleur couldn't get to the highest gear.

2. This one is about certain specific combinations of frame / hub / derailleur. A friend had an old steel road frame (126mm spacing) with applicable hub (don't remember model) and a 9-speed MTB derailleur (XTR RD-M952). All working well, except lazy shifting to the highest gear only. After checking all and all, I realized that the last cog is right on the edge of the derailleur range of possible movement. This 9-speed mech was expecting the whole cogset to be positioned a bit more to the right (closer to the dropout). Additional factor was the steel hanger which is a bit thinner than an alloy one. Simple solution - add a washer to space out the derailleur. Just 1mm might be enough.

Cheers!

[StevenWyman]

Very helpful guide, got my gunked up Shimano altus unstuck from first gear. Thank you!

[abdulhaleemabbas]

Did what you said and worked prefectly sir .Thank you 😊

[DrRobAndShannonJonesRD]

Great video! Thank you. Straight to the point to fix the EXACT issue I was having! 🙌🏻🙏

[jeremiahvillareal]

damn bro this is very helpful i tried to search some videos on yt and i wont find any till i found your video men you are a lifesaver

[Randum_Gornutt]

Fantastic- exactly what I was looking for when troubleshooting!